The Daily Stat: Prices with More Syllables Seem Bigger to Consumers

Are you having trouble viewing this email? If so, click here to see it in a web browser. HOME   |   BLOGS   |   THE MAGAZINE   |   BOOKS   |   AUTHORS   |   STORE RSS   |   Mobile APRIL 3, 2013 Prices with More Syllables Seem Bigger to Consumers In an experiment, U.S. consumers perceived laptop and TV prices as having 9% greater magnitude if the items' prices were presented including cents, as in $1493.29 versus $1493, says a team led by Keith S. Coulter of Clark University. A price's longer syllabic length increases its perceived magnitude—even if the price is presented visually, rather than spoken. Salespeople might gain an advantage by mentioning their own prices in brief form while referring to competitors' multisyllabically, such as "fourteen ninety-three" versus "one thousand, four hundred ninety-three twenty-nine," the researchers suggest. Source: Comma N' cents in pricing: The effects of auditory representation encoding on price magnitude perceptions Share Today's Stat: FEATURED PRODUCT Reinventing You: Define Your Brand, Imagine Your Future EBook Now Available Are you where you want to be professionally? Whether you want to advance faster at your present company, change jobs, or make the jump to a new field entirely, the goal is clear: to build a career that thrives on your unique passions and talents. But to achieve this in today's competitive job market, it's almost certain that at some point you'll need to reinvent yourself professionally. Consider this book your road map for the next phase of your career journey. Branding expert Dorie Clark provides a step-by-step guide to help you assess your unique strengths, develop a compelling personal brand, and ensure that others recognize the powerful contribution you can make. Mixing personal stories with engaging interviews and examples from well-known personalities—Mark Zuckerberg, Al Gore, Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin, and others—"Reinventing You" shows how to think big about your professional goals, take control of your career, build a reputation that opens doors for you, and finally live the life you want. ADVERTISEMENT Follow the Stat: BEST SELLERS HBR's 10 Must Reads: The Essentials HBR's 10 Must Reads Boxed Set HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations HBR Guide to Better Business Writing HBR Guide to Getting the Right Work Done PREVIOUS STATS Market Forces Make the U.S. a World Leader in CO2 Reduction For Greater Happiness, Spend Less Time Working and Commuting How a Federal Tax Gave Us Bebop A Vicious Cycle: Cuts in News Coverage Alienate Readers Many High School Grads Say "No, Thanks" to More-Selective Colleges The New Baseball Manager's Job Is to Reverse the Previous Guy's Bad Choices Startups with Female Directors Have Better Chance of Survival Higher Levels of Social Capital Lead to Fewer Traffic Fatalities Just Think of All That Product Placement, Going to Waste For Apps, Only the Very Top of the Bestseller List Really Matters Introducing Mobile ManageMentor Powered by the proven content of Harvard ManageMentor™ iTunes >> Android >> UNSUBSCRIBE   |   UPDATE YOUR PROFILE   |   MORE EMAIL NEWSLETTERS   |   PRIVACY POLICY Was this email forwarded to you? If so, sign up to start receiving your own copy. ABOUT THIS MAILING LIST You have received this message because you subscribed to the "The Daily Stat" email newsletter from Harvard Business Review. If at any point you wish to remove yourself from this list, change your email address, or sign up for other email newsletters and alerts, please visit the Harvard Business Review Email Newsletter Preference Center. OPT OUT If you do not wish to receive any email messages from Harvard Business Review, click here. ADVERTISE WITH HBR This enewsletter is read by thousands of decision makers every day. Learn more about connecting your brand with this audience. Copyright © 2013 Harvard Business School Publishing, an affiliate of Harvard Business School. All rights reserved. Harvard Business Publishing | 60 Harvard Way | Boston, MA 02163 Customer Service: 800-545-7685 (+1-617-783-7600 outside the U.S. and Canada)